A way of thinking about culture: an exercise

"Edward
Hall has described culture as a selective screen through which you
see the world. You could also think of culture as a set of tinted
contact lenses through which you view the world around you. But these
lenses were put on you so soon after you were born by your parents
and shaped by your circumstances, that you were never aware that
you'd had them fitted. If you are American, for example, maybe your
lenses are tinted red or blue - so the world looks a particular way
to you.

Japanese,
on the other hand, was fitted with another colour - so even though
the world she looks at is the same as yours, she doesn't see it the
same as you do. It is important to recognise you are wearing cultural
contact lenses and that you begin to learn the way they affect your
perceptions. If you learn enough about your lenses, you may even
learn to take them off for short periods of time - and maybe even
try on somebody else's to see how the world looks. That's cross cultural
empathy".
Charlene Schmult, University of Michigan

An exercise
in self-awareness...

You can
begin to know what your own "rules" are by noticing when you are surprised
by others' behaviour. Often, these surprises also feel strange or "wrong".

Here are
some things I have noticed that felt strange. For each one, what might
my "rule" be?

Communication
style

Spaniards
on the bus talking loudly

Americans
sending Christmas letters boasting about their children

Tourists
not saying "please" and "thank you" in shops

Noticing
which sounds better: Give me your book OR Can I just have a peek
at your book?